Mbaakanyi, Kealotswe winners of Mastercard Women SME Leaders Awards

Local business women Marang Mbaakanyi, Founder and CEO, Drones of Africa and Wada Kealotswe, Founder and Director, Aiko Creations t/a Eco Zera have been named among the winners of the Master-card Women SME Leaders Awards. 

A virtual ceremony was held celebrating the achievements of women-led businesses in 22 categories across multiple industry sectors in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa. Launched in 2022 in collaboration with Entrepreneur Middle East, the Master-card Women SME Leaders Awards is the first initiative of its kind to recognise women-owned and run SMEs shaping the future of the region. 

Women of tomorrow

“The second edition of the awards has once again exceeded our expectations – from receiving entries from diverse businesses to seeing the women of tomorrow raising the bar as we embrace a future that includes more women across industries. 

“I’d like to congratulate all the winners for their contributions and commitment to the SME success story and for being a part of the Women SME Leaders Awards 2023,” said Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President of Market Development, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa at Master-card. The second edition of the awards saw 4,547 submissions from businesses with a turnover of less than $13.6 million (AED50 million) and employing between six to 50 people.

22 categories

Entry to the award’s 22 categories – which included The Designer, The Logistician, The Retailer, The Educator and The Investor – was open to all female individuals or businesses, who have their offices or offer their services in EEMEA. 

Other award categories included The F&B Leader, The Educator, The Real Estate Leader, The Health Custodian, the Executive, The Leader of Tomorrow, The Leader in Agriculture and The Visionary, in addition to others. 

[TradeArabia News Service]